Ukrainians in the USA may lose the right to employment: who the changes affect
Ukrainians in the USA with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) could have lost the right to official employment as of July 22. However, the Federal District Court of Massachusetts temporarily suspended this decision, and the final verdict is expected by August 5.
As reported former Ukrainian Ambassador to the USA Valeriy Chaly, the changes resulted from the adoption of the legislative initiative by US President Donald Trump, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which shortened the validity period of Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) for TPS holders.
Chaly noted that without court intervention, hundreds of thousands of people using the Temporary Protected Status program could have lost the right to work in the USA as of July 22.
At the same time, he criticized the level of support for Ukrainian refugees, stating that they failed to sufficiently consolidate to protect their interests, and according to him, the Ukrainian authorities are practically not addressing this issue.
Currently, the TPS status, which provides legal grounds for over 100,000 Ukrainian citizens to stay in the USA, is valid until October 19, 2026.
According to US legislation, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must decide on the extension of the program no later than 60 days before its expiration — approximately by August 20.
If the agency does not make a decision within the specified period, the TPS status will be automatically extended for another six months. In case of a positive decision, DHS may extend the program for 12 or 18 months.
Ukrainians applying for Temporary Protected Status should also consider the cost of documents. The initial application for TPS costs $510, and the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) processing fee is $1,030, although a reduced fee of $560 is available for certain categories of applicants.
As previously reported by the "Judicial and Legal Newspaper", the leader of the Czech political movement SPD, Tomio Okamura, stated that the Czech Republic is allegedly negotiating within the European Union about the possible termination of temporary protection for Ukrainian men of conscription age. According to him, support from other EU countries is needed to implement such an initiative.
Okamura also stated that he advocates for the earliest possible termination of temporary protection for all Ukrainians in the Czech Republic. Among his arguments, he mentioned that some Ukrainian citizens allegedly regularly travel home "on vacation."
He associates the termination of temporary protection primarily with the end of the war in Ukraine. The politician believes that after the end of hostilities, this mechanism will lose relevance, and Ukrainians will have to either return home or apply for standard residence permits in the Czech Republic.
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